There is no getting away from it; This is Manchester United’s worst start to a season in 40 years.
It’s a statistic that repeats itself every year, but the emergence of the term at Old Trafford is puzzling. While some will say they saw it coming, using Ole Gunnar Solskjaer as a reference point, others will be surprised.
After all, this is a team that was exceptional under Michael Carrick at the end of his last term. No team scored more points from Week 20 to Week 38 of the season.
So, where did it all go wrong? Well, the manager can’t get a vote from one of the modern greats, Bruno Fernandes.
How Bruno Fernandes fared against Leeds
When Fernandes is on form, he is one of the best players in the Premier League. The fact that he won the PFA Player of the Year award last season tells you all you need to know.
However, this period has been a challenge. He scored a brilliant hat-trick at home to Ipswich in the opening weeks of the season, but that’s as good as it gets for the Portuguese in 2026/27.
A goalless performance against Leeds on Sunday afternoon means he has now gone six games without a point. What doesn’t work is a change of position.
Against Atletico Madrid in the Champions League last week, Carrick chose Fernandes to play on the right. At Elland Road he played on the left wing.
Fernandes and Leeds | |
|---|---|
Minutes played | 90 |
It touches | 51 |
Accurate transmissions | 23/37 (62%) |
Chances were created | 1 |
Shots | 3 |
Shots on target | 1 |
Successful dribbles | 0 |
Battles | 1 |
Cuts | 1 |
Ball recovery | 4 |
Duels won | 1/6 |
Given the results and Fernandes’ performance levels, this decision was not justified.
At the weekend, the 32-year-old took the most shots in the game with three, but was unable to finish off the dribble, created just one chance and won just one of six duels. It was another poor performance and led to deeper concerns about the captaincy.
Why Fernandes becomes a wider issue
Fernandes is one of the best transfers in the history of Manchester United. He scored 107 goals and had 108 assists. Few at Old Trafford have dazzled like him, even if some of the most iconic players the game has ever seen have donned the famous United red.
The last period was a special period. He has 21 assists in the league, breaking Thierry Henry and Kevin De Bruyne’s season record of 20.
As a result, it defies belief that the attacking midfielder has just one assist to show for his efforts in ten games this term.
What’s going on? It’s almost like he’s trying a little too hard. He knows he is the best player on the team and he knows everything will happen through him. It’s a lot of pressure to play with him.
Maybe it’s because he knows his race is running. Fernandes has rejected lucrative offers to leave United in the past. Saudi Arabia called, but he wanted to stay in England; he specifically wanted to stay in Manchester.
However, at 32, you get the sense that he potentially has one more move. At the moment, he probably shares Lisandro Martinez’s opinion. He gave blood, sweat and tears to the project and got very little back.
At the very least, the hierarchy can give him a working attack to work with.
Why should Fernandes be upset by Man United’s attack?
Recruiting has been a horror story for some time now.
Thankfully, the days of Jadon Sancho, Antoni and Rasmus Hojlund are long gone, but problems still remain in the final third. Indeed, Fernandes’ 21 assists last season is quite remarkable.
In fact, the forward line has improved at Old Trafford. The work done to bring Matheus Cunha, Bryan Mbeumo and Benjamin Sesko to the club in the summer of 2025 has to be admired. All three seemed like good signings in the Magic.
Still, there are scars from days gone by, especially Joshua Zirkzee. He is one of a number of downright nasty additions to United’s forward line since Fernandes signed. In fact, it’s a football crime that he doesn’t have better options in front of him. He has a right to be disappointed with the recruitment in recent years.
There are some names out there with proven pedigree. Look at the great Cristiano Ronaldo and Edinson Cavani.
Unfortunately, Zirkzee is mostly cut from Hojlund or Wout Weghorst pieces. A tall striker, he never really made the grade in Manchester and it’s only getting worse for him.
After Sesko’s arrival more than a year ago, he fell out of favor and played just 26 times in the 2025/26 season, scoring two goals. He started just five times in the Premier League.
Unfortunately for Zirkzee, he looks even lower after Mbeumo’s performance on Sunday afternoon.
The Netherlands international was an unused sub, preferred by Mbeumo as a leading striker, and he took his chance brilliantly to slide in to give United the lead.
While he’s not a full-on centre-forward, he’s certainly a threat in the back three and deserves to be the focal point of the attack with Cesko out injured.
However, this is bad news for Zirkzee. It looked like the 25-year-old could leave in the summer, but he has remained at Old Trafford and is willing to put up with a lack of playing time as a result.
It’s safe to say he was a colossal waste of money, signing for £36m, scoring just 9 times in 81 games. All that said, his 8% conversion rate last season was just as bad as Weghorst’s 6% conversion rate while at United.
Considering his price tag and wages take the value of this deal to £57m, he’s a bigger problem than what’s going on with Fernandes or even Martinez at the moment.
It was worrying that they couldn’t replace him in the summer. Will their luck be better in the winter? You would be surprised.